4.5/5 ★ – Yeij's review of HROT.

HROT is amazing, full stop. Only the first episode is out and it's one of the most memorable and atmospheric FPS's that I've played. Made by one person in a homemade engine written in pascal since the 90s, HROT is by definition a HUGE passion project. From its influences with Chasm: The Rift and Quake, HROT is still its own game thankfully due to its gloomy atmosphere, oppressive world, and an underlying tone of absurdity that flows with everything smoothly. With its crunchy graphics, simple combat, and minimal verticality, HROT is a game that may appear to be incredibly simple but then has an atmosphere that oozes out of every crevice and crack in the decaying walls of the police state. The fights aren't terrible, they can actually get quite cathartic and tense but what I remember more of is the rain hitting the cracking bricks of an old church, sparks emitting light in a dark maintenance hall, and walking through what seemed to be abandoned parts of the city. HROT is very promising, the atmosphere is more than enough to buy the game and the combat is quite enjoyable. Since it's still quite early in its development (episode 1 took me 3 hours to beat with finding all the secrets), I can understand not buying it immediately but please, if it looks interesting at all, wishlist the game, follow its development, or check up on the game every once in a while. As for myself, I'll be anxiously waiting for the release of future episodes and probably write a new review once the game's finished.